He Said Never

The Lost Corisis, Book 2

By: Ruth Cardello

Narrated by: Rock Engle, Amelie Griffin

From New York Times bestselling author Ruth Cardello comes another burning Corisi romance about family crises, dark secrets, and unforeseen love.

Riley doesn’t want her mom to know that she’s been seeing her newly discovered family, the Corisi clan. Riley’s biological father made her mother’s life hell, and even though he’s dead, her fear of anyone who shares his last name lives on.

After attending two funerals, Gavin’s father has decided Gavin needs a wife and children to be happy. Rather than inheriting his family’s company, Gavin now must earn his way back into his father’s good graces by producing a fiancée.

Everything with Riley would have gone easier if he had just lied to her about his meeting with her brother Dominic. The truth would have hurt her, and that was the last thing he wanted.

He never wanted a relationship, but when he is forced to choose between business or a future with her, he realizes he’ll choose her every time.

©2021 by Ruth Cardello. (P)2021 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Readers will root for this mature, open-minded, and fun-loving couple.”—Publishers Weekly

Love me some Gavin

Love Gavin and Riley's story and having it read to me is just bonus. Rock Engle andAmelie Griffin bring life to the characters and allow you to just sit back and enjoy the story,

Surprised Me

This novel did not unfold as I expected. But that's great, because it caught me a bit off guard and gave me a beautiful story. Riley and Gavin are an adventure, for lack of a better term. Gavin is quick to assume, which creates some fun scenes as he adds 1 plus 1 and gets 3. Riley finds him extremely irritating and judgmental. He earned it.

This read has an interesting pace. It has the feel of a leisurely walk in the rain as opposed to the quick jog of so many novels. The author allows the story to spool out as the characters get to know each other and the circumstances they find themselves in.

This is a sister piece to the first "Lost Corisis" book and brings back the characters from that first novel. That's awesome, because those characters are delightful, entertaining, and fun. This book can be read as a stand-alone, but the first book is so good I'd recommend starting with it.

Readers can expect some adult language and plenty of scorching scenes as Riley and Gavin finally come to terms with their red-hot attraction.

Laughing and crying!

The way this story just reels you in and keeps you is just a perfect example of Ruth Cardello's great appeal! The storyline brings this entire family in closer, and we love the Corisi's and all their love and angst even more. This is a great series, but also, stand alone, and I will definitely be rereading them all!

Another fun and easy read

This was another easy and fun read. I really enjoyed getting to know Riley and Gavin throughout this story. This is the 2nd book in this series and is interconnected to other series about the Corisis so there are familiar characters that we get to catch up with as well as seeing Riley in the last book. I loved watching her move forward with the new family connections and pushing Gavin in the right ways. She had a great personality that I really enjoyed and it brought out a lighter, fun side in Gavin. This story was well written, flowed well, and was easy to read because of it. It pulled me in from start to finish and I had to see what was going to happen next. I really enjoyed it and am excited for the next book and to see Kal (Riley's brother) come back around and deal with the connection to the Corisis.
The narrators did a good job with this story and characters. I enjoyed it and the extra dynamic that they created.

Such a sweet story

This book made me smile at so many points throughout! Can't wait for the next part of the story!!!

Excellent Story!

4.75 Stars for me!

My rating range of this story... 4 - 5 Stars
If significant, why?

Main Character Ratings...
H = 7/10
h = 8/10

Narrator Rating(s)
M = 9/10
F = 9/10
If below 5/10,why?

Was cheating involved? No
Any major triggers to be aware of?

Scenes with heat... Yes
What point does it start? 50%
How much of the story? 5-7%
Anything beyond M/F? No
If yes, explained

Heat Rating... 7/10
Clean or Fade to Black - 1 or 2
Normal to Descriptive 3-5
Detailed Descriptive Sex - 6-7
Um, Wow, Beyond Descriptive Sex - 8 or above

Was there so much sex or unrealistic sex that you rolled your eyes and/or skipped forward? No

The back story... The MCs meet in a coffee shop and are initially repelled by each other. They can't stop thinking about each other and when they meet again, they start to talk.

The Romance... They really develop feelings for each other while talking on the phone and she is slowly breaking down his walls. Her brother starts to hover and creates issues.

The drama explosion... Her brother goes too far and the h finds out that the H did not tell her about his meeting with Dominic.

Did it feel Real, OK or contrived? A bit contrived
Was it OTT? Yes
Separation involved? Slight
Was it resolved properly or rushed? Real

Final Notes... The only thing I am dinging the story on is the OTT response from the h after finding out that the H did not tell her everything about the first conversation between the H and Dominic. Was Dominic an ass... Yes. It was obvious that the H was trying to protect her relationship with her brother and not trying hide anything from her. It was resolved very quickly which is why it was only a 0.25 ding.


HEA or HFN? HEA

loved it

I really enjoyed reading this author.  I look forward to reading more books by this author in the near future.

He said never - what happened?

I love Ruth Cardello’s books but this one was lacking on many levels. It was slow getting into the story. The story and the characters got good in the last 5 chapters and you didn’t want it to end. Then there was no epilogue. Nothing to know what happened to Riley and Gavin and nothing to look forward to with Cal or Jarrod. Missed opportunity to leave me wanting more.
And while I enjoyed the female narrator, the male narrator was not the voice of an Alpha male.
I hope the next book, if there is one, will be better.

hard to finish

The story was boring and predictable. I didn't understand the need for the way the way the character, Dominic, behaved.

More to life than work

Cute story about finding your happiness. Gavin’s father wants him to find a soulmate…not give his life to the company as his father has done. Gavin doesn’t believe in love and happy ever after so this will be a challenge. Then he meets Riley Ragsdale and she, unknowingly, welcomes the challenge. Interfering siblings and adorable niece and nephew help to complete the story.